EU ambassadors failed to find a breakthrough on a joint negotiating position for Turkey's membership talks and could not agree on a common response to Ankara's refusal to recognize EU member Cyprus.
Britain and France narrowed their differences and presented a joint draft declaration which said the member states "regret that Turkey felt it necessary to make a declaration" in July noting its refusal to recognize the government in Nicosia.
It warned that if Turkey did not allow Cypriot ships or planes "full" access, negotiations could be halted on all transport-related issues.
The draft added that "prior recognition of all member states is a necessary component of accession. Accordingly, the EU underlines the importance it attaches to the normalization of relations between Turkey and all EU member states, as soon as possible."
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded the island following a short-lived coup backed by the supporters of union with Greece. Ankara supports the Turkish-Cypriot breakaway state in the north of the island, and not the internationally recognized Greek-Cypriot government in the south.
The EU argues that any country wishing to join the bloc must recognize all 25 EU members.
Cyprus is demanding Turkey recognize its government and wants a specific deadline for recognition during the entry talks. Britain, which holds the EU presidency, was trying to get a deal on the joint position before the planned opening of membership negotiations with Turkey on Oct. 3.
France, Austria and Cyprus have expressed reservations over talks with Turkey. France and Cyprus have demanded Turkey recognize the Mediterranean island. Austria is pushing for the EU's proposed negotiating mandate to contain a clarification that the outcome of talks should include a lesser option of a "partnership" between Ankara and the EU.
Turkey's entry negotiations are likely to last at least a decade. Diplomats have said the talks could be frozen if Turkey does not move toward recognizing Cyprus or fails to live up to human rights and political reform commitments.
Cyprus threatened on Tuesday to block Turkey's accession talks.
Meeting the last precondition to opening entry talks, Turkey signed a deal in July extending a customs union with the EU to include Cyprus and nine other countries that joined the bloc last year.
Ankara said by signing, it had met all demands for membership talks. However, it upset many EU governments by issuing a separate declaration stating its signature did not mean it recognizes the Cypriot government.
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including